Alan Mauldin
MOULTRIE — Colquitt County residential garbage customers could be looking at a $3 per-container increase to deal with a shortfall in the county’s solid waste fund.
In a Jan. 29 memo, Interim County Administrator Marion Hay said that at the end of 2008 the waste enterprise fund faced a $341,000 shortage.
During a Colquitt County Commission Finance Committee meeting last week, Hay, whose last day on the job was Friday, told commissioners that a rate hike seems to be the only solution. Hay said that Worth County charges $20 per month for residential collection, compared to $15 for Colquitt County.
In the Jan. 29 memo, Hay said that as of Dec. 31, the solid waste enterprise fund owed $1.89 million to the county’s general fund as well as $651,090 to the Bank of Lenox for garbage truck payments. At the time the fund contained only $1.55 million.
The shortfall also brings up another issue, in that the enterprise fund is supposed to operate without any infusion of cash from other county revenues.
If the fund is supported by the county’s general fund, it would mean that residents in the incorporated areas would pay for garbage collection twice, once in their town and again by supplementing the cost of unincorporated residents.
County Finance Director Wayne Putnal told commissioners that the solid waste enterprise fund was deprived of revenue initially because of a series of lawsuits. When lawsuits were filed challenging the mandatory countywide curbside garbage collection, in many cases the county did not collect on accounts.
The amount that was not collected during the time the lawsuits were under way cost the county as much as $700,000, he said.
The county ultimately won three court challenges to the mandatory garbage collection.
“So it got started out on the wrong foot,” Putnal said. “Those original receivables, if you had collected them, you would have had a lot of money in that fund over the years.”
Putnal said that in December he determined that collections were running under budget and that expenses were on budget and in some cases over budget.
Hay said he recommended increasing the cost of garbage service from $15 per month to $18 per month for one can, and from $5 to $8 for a second can. Free and reduced-price collection for low-income residents would not be affected.
In surrounding counties the manner of collection and fees vary a great deal.
As Hay noted, Worth County charges $20 for the first container. It also charges $10 for a second container, and waives fees for low-income and elderly residents.
In Thomas County there is no curbside pickup in unincorporated areas, and the county has Dumpsters placed around the county for residents to dispose of household garbage. The county does not charge any fees or additional taxes for the privilege.
Cook County operates under the same system as Thomas County.
The city of Tifton collects curbside in unincorporated Tift County, and charges $12.52 for a first container and $7.50 for a second can. City residents pay $21 per month for residential garbage collection in Tifton.
In Brooks County the county has Dumpsters placed around the county, and unincorporated residents pay an additional $179 per year in taxes as a solid waste fee.
